Beware FP-10 oil and Khukuris

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falar

Joined
Jul 7, 2012
Messages
1,199
I don't know what is up with this oil, but it will rust your Khukuries



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I switched from this to SLiP 2000 EWL for all of my guns and had a bunch of it left over, so decided to use it on my knives.

Bad idea, this is what my CAK looked like after a week in the scabbard with FP-10. My 20" Siru faired much better.

I was able to use a cloth and Flitz to get rid of the the rust for the most part, but in the right light you can still see where they were.

WEIRD IMO, this oil has been GTG for me in the past. Have no idea how it does this, but do not use it on your knives.

Is there a better way to polish out these marks? Scotchbrite plus flitz maybe? I was NOT happy, as this CAK by Lacchu was absolutely flawless, which is so rare for handmade items. I mean I could not find a single thing on this knife that wasn't perfect, so I immediately decided to not make it a user. I guess if I can never fully repolish it I could always "promote" it to user status.
 
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Hello Falar-Don't give up yet-If Flitz won't restore it to perfection, you can purchase either white polishing compound(bar)or "pink scratchless" compound from Jantz supply.Either of these used with a felt bob on a dremel tool or applied to a leather strop and burnished into the affected areas will remove the markings(not pitting)from light rust and restore a beautiful mirror finish. Good luck.
 
you can either use buffing wheel, like kamis use, to return to mirror polished finish, but be careful not to hurt heat treatment

3m sells some polishing cloth from 30 micron/about 400 grit to 1 micron/about 8k grit. i used the 8k on a sword i acquired and it seems to have helped with the finish, but needs lots of work with that grit/micron. http://www.riogrande.com/Product/3M-Tri-M-Ite-Imperial-Polishing-Paper-Assortment/337308?pos=4

also some areas sell 12k grit sand paper that will help get back to mirror finish

i generally use mineral oil for my blades and havnt had much problem in gulf coast region of texas
 
I have had Khukuris with those blotches. It is more of a light rust colored patina, than a serious corrosive rust. The easiest way to remove that is by buffing with a light polishing compound. Applications of Fitz will do it, but that becomes a lot more work. Use Rem oil or Break free when your finished.
 
falar said:
Anyone find it odd that a quality oil would do this though?
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No, not at all. There are many additives and secret ingredients in gun oils and car oils. These formulas can and do change depending on different factors. So you never know the effect on any given type of media or in this case steel.
Like bladeright on the humid Texas coast, stick with the tried and true (and cheap) mineral oil in the form of Baby Oil.
Some of things Baby Oil is good for are: leather, bone, horn, wood, metal, and last but not least babies.

I learned from a maker and collector of Kukris to:
1. Put all my knives with, but out of their sheaths in a large leak proof container.
2. Pour Baby Oil into the container covering all the items completely.
3. Let soak for a day or two.
4. Wipe off excess Baby Oil and if for storage or display wax sheaths, handles, and blades.
Note: Flitz, Autosol, or any other metal polish can be used before the above process to clean the blade.
Nepali Baby by Jean Marie Hullot.jpg
Photo by Jean Marie Hullot
Remember for years Baby Oil has been used on Nepali Babies and Khukuris with good effect.
 
I forgot to add that if you use your Kukris for butchering or with food you should use Baby Oil or another type of edible/non-toxic oil.
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sweetcostarica said:
I forgot to add that if you use your Kukris for butchering or with food you should use Baby Oil or another type of edible/non-toxic oil.
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Pharmaceutical grade mineral oil is about the best to use. It's less viscuous than baby oil. Stays on the blade better and doesnt have that annoying new baby smell.;)
 
Karda said:
Pharmaceutical grade mineral oil is about the best to use. It's less viscuous than baby oil. Stays on the blade better and doesnt have that annoying new baby smell.;)
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I agree with you about the smell. Going to pick some of that up today at our local rite aid. I can't imagine it's that expensive either...
 
I seem to recall reading that pure mineral oil is a laxative, so be warned if you plan on eating with it, that you may experience some...effects.
 
crimsonfalcon07 said:
I seem to recall reading that pure mineral oil is a laxative, so be warned if you plan on eating with it, that you may experience some...effects.
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It is a mild laxative. As long as you wipe the blade off beforehand you shouldnt need to rely on your depends......
 
Thanks for the tip Karda. Just looked that type and up on eBay and it was listed as Mineral Oil, 100% Pure USP food grade. I'll buy some and check it out.
 
falar said:
I don't know what is up with this oil, but it will rust your Khukuries



vsnvif.jpg




34rzjpi.jpg




I switched from this to SLiP 2000 EWL for all of my guns and had a bunch of it left over, so decided to use it on my knives.

Bad idea, this is what my CAK looked like after a week in the scabbard with FP-10. My 20" Siru faired much better.

I was able to use a cloth and Flitz to get rid of the the rust for the most part, but in the right light you can still see where they were.

WEIRD IMO, this oil has been GTG for me in the past. Have no idea how it does this, but do not use it on your knives.

Is there a better way to polish out these marks? Scotchbrite plus flitz maybe? I was NOT happy, as this CAK by Lacchu was absolutely flawless, which is so rare for handmade items. I mean I could not find a single thing on this knife that wasn't perfect, so I immediately decided to not make it a user. I guess if I can never fully repolish it I could always "promote" it to user status.
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I've always used Mother's Aluminum and Mag polish (guessing to the name, don't want to dig through the closet), for polishing knives. This includes 4 HI blades and a couple of other edges used for food-service (properly cleaned).

Your pics look like a minor stain or tarnish, far less than cutting through most materials. If you want to keep a mirror finish, keep it oiled and gently test it with fine polishing agents. I still recommend Mother's though, just clean it all off when you're done and add a thin layer of Birchwood Casey Gun Oil. Wish they still made Marble's. :mad:
 
Falar,

Rub with 2000 grit wet/dry paper till the rust is gone (about 5 mins from the looks of it), then a cloth with green CrO compound till polished, and finally a quick application of noxon. It will be better then new :0) amazon has all that stuff for relatively cheap. Good luck

Ant
 
Ps - unless you are a jeweler with alot of experience I would not use a dremel tool to polish your blade.
 
FP-10 does contain chlorinated parrafin additives, they should be of the more stable long chain variety, and the oil is also supposed to have some buffering/anti-rust additives to keep any acid formation under control. Militec-1 is basically a pure chlorinated parrafin additive which forms hydrochloric acid rapidly on contact with moisture(fp-10/weaponshield CLP contain around 20-30%, Militec is 99-100%). I stopped using it except as an additive when I discovered how rapidly it can accelerate rust on a piece of steel exposed to water.

A few things could have happened. The makers of FP-10 could have switched to a less stable chlorininated additive that breaks down into hydrochloric acid faster than the buffers can keep up, the oil could have been blended wrong at the factory, or as I have found sometimes, FP-10 doesn't really "spread" across a polished surface very well, it's not a polarized oil and tends to bead up, which could leave areas of the blade unprotected. I've switched to weaponshield CLP for most purposes but while I've found it to be better than FP-10 at rust protection, it's still a chlorinated product and that worries me a bit. For lubrication there seems to be some newer alternatives with a non-corrosive boron ester that I'd like to try once I run low on my current stock of weaponshield. For outright rust protection though, especially when talking about moist environments and long term, best to stay away from any chlorine containing product.
 
those spots don't look like rust to me, they look more like a film or waxy build up. I'd wash the knife with Dawn Dish soap (cuts through oil and wax) and see if it comes off. In my experience rust spots are red, brown or black.
 
wildmanh said:
those spots don't look like rust to me, they look more like a film or waxy build up. I'd wash the knife with Dawn Dish soap (cuts through oil and wax) and see if it comes off. In my experience rust spots are red, brown or black.
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It didn't look like rust to me either but when dragging a thumbnail across it it was very slightly rough.

I applied a ton of flitz to both sides (flitz does wonders for the brass parts of these knives BTW) and took an old white t shirt and scrubbed the crap out of it. They are mostly gone, but in the right light if you look you can see the outlines of where they were very faintly. I will continue to do this from time to time and see how it goes.
 
It think Yoda has the right idea. It is probably from something chlorinated or possibly flourinated in the product your using.
It is a stain, possibly light etching. The only way to really get rid of it is to sand and buff it back out.
 
falar said:
It didn't look like rust to me either but when dragging a thumbnail across it it was very slightly rough.

I applied a ton of flitz to both sides (flitz does wonders for the brass parts of these knives BTW) and took an old white t shirt and scrubbed the crap out of it. They are mostly gone, but in the right light if you look you can see the outlines of where they were very faintly. I will continue to do this from time to time and see how it goes.
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Thanks for further elaborating! Helps clear things up.

Karda said:
It think Yoda has the right idea. It is probably from something chlorinated or possibly flourinated in the product your using.
It is a stain, possibly light etching. The only way to really get rid of it is to sand and buff it back out.
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Etching does sound probable.

By the way, all of my khukri's that has seen much use are discolored all to heck, most are a greyish blue color with darker spots. IMO Users should look used!
 
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